I'm done!!! It was A-MA-ZING!Seriously. I thought it was really good.
I can't go into details about why I thought of the plot line, because I wouldn't want to ruin it for anyone else who hasn't read it yet.
It's a thick enough book that I couldn't finish it all in one go. It took awhile for me to get going on the book, come to think of it. Which was nice. That from the beginning, I wasn't immediately engrossed in the plot line, so I could put the book down and have a life.
The beginning worried me a bit, because I was completely lost. Stuff was being brought up that I'd completely forgot had happened. For awhile, I'd actually thought that I'd missed reading the second to last book and that I'd skipped a whole installment. That's one thing that I would criticize about the series. The books haven't been published quickly enough for me to remember what had happened previously, which is a little bit of a problem when the author likes to bring up little details which turn out to be really important. Sure, I could have re-read the last book just before I knew this one was coming out again, but I don't think that should be necessary. Especially with the fact that the movies are so far behind, I could see people getting confused between what had just happened in the last book, to what had just happened in the last movie. At least that's what happened to me. A big re-cap isn't necessary, just a little something to get readers back into the zone. Also, it'd be nice for those who are just picking the series up at the last book (I would assume that most people wouldn't do this, but you never know). It'd just made it that much more accessible.
I was really impressed with the author's ability to link up little pieces of info from previous books to the plot in this final installment of the series. I really hate being able to predict what's going to happen in movie, so I guess that's the same kind of thing for books. I don't mind it in the cheesy movies, where it's supposed to be a fairy tale ending, but I rather enjoy it when it's only at the end that everything comes together and a whole bunch of things are explained. Lots of great eureka moments.
Nearing the end of the book, it was getting really good. The chapters ended on cliffhangers making you want to keep reading. For the first time in a couple Harry Potter books, I wasn't confused at the amount of pages left to the book while I was reading. Just like I sometimes look at the time when watching a TV show or a movie to see how much is left of the show/movie to predict how much more the plot can develop, I often take a look at the width of the book still left to go. The pacing of this one seemed alright.
As the plot line was heating up, I had moments where my eyes couldn't keep up to the speed at which my brain was trying to soak up the story. I had to slow myself down to really read the words properly and take in what was happening. At the best parts, the book played out like a movie in my head. I could see and hear the characters...the way that it was written seemed so perfect to be translated onto the big screen.
As I said before, once the story started to build, I really appreciated the pacing. It was non-stop suspense and excitement for awhile and then, I can only explain it as a sigh. Like the "slow part" of a skating program. A nice breather for all the anxiety that had been built up.
Was I surprised by the ending? Yes and no. Before I started reading the book, I had a guess as to what would happen. This did come up in the book, but the ending wasn't exactly as I'd expected. I guess the build up before the book was published made me believe something that wasn't true. As I was nearing the end, and things were falling into place, while I wasn't completely sure how it would end, I had a pretty good idea.
Anyway, it's a good book. I hope Harry Potter fans enjoyed it.
- picture courtesy of www.chapters.indigo.ca
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